You Got the Babysitter Asterisk!
by kabukimono
Summary: Even new parents need a night to themselves now and then. Edea and Ringabel graciously volunteer to babysit the Arriors' infant son so that his parents can finally get away for a while. They're his godparents, after all! There's no way any of this could go wrong. May EVENTUALLY contain B2nd spoilers.
1. Chapter 1

"Mrs. Baker knows that you're here, so don't hesitate to fetch her if you need," Tiz was currently saying, even as Ringabel leaned heavily on him, attempting to push the other man out the door. But Tiz was now officially heavier than him, having built up muscle once he'd gone back to the farms of Norende, and putting up a good fight despite the differences in their heights.

"Yes yes, we know," Ringabel huffed. He'd been slacking on his workouts, but after this he was going to have to start again, it seemed, if Tiz was giving him this much trouble. "I'm aware of where she lives." He'd met her, and her daughter, before. Lovely ladies.

"And Agnès will have the pendant out, so call us if there's an emergency," the younger man continued, acting oblivious to the way that he was being shoved out the door. Too oblivious. He'd been going over the locations of everything in the house, their nearest neighbors, the rules for putting the baby down for a nap, and everything else two potential babysitters would need to know for the better part of an hour.

In the kitchen, Agnès was hovering over Edea and the infant that the blonde woman was holding. He was currently drowsy from his latest meal, clutching his godmother's blouse as he gazed up at his mother, unaware that she was about to leave him. Agnès smoothed her hand over his fluffy brown hair as she spoke. "You know where the food is, just be sure it's mashed completely before giving it to him, please. It was made just fresh this morning, but we didn't puree it completely to help keep some of the freshness."

"Don't worry about a thing, Agnès," Edea assured her. "I'm great at mashing food."

Agnès shook her head. It would be the first time she and Tiz would be out and away from their child since he'd been born nearly a year ago, and she was still nervous, even though it was Edea and Ringabel who had volunteered - practically demanded - to watch him. "I know you are, but he still doesn't have much teeth to chew, so…"

The door closed as Ringabel finally pushed Tiz outside.

"Don't worry! Ringabel and I will look after him as if he were our own. We are his godparents, after all. He's our favorite."

That was not very reassuring. Agnès gave Edea a look, and the blonde woman continued hastily. "Look, we both looked into how to care for a kid, okay? Everything will be fine! How hard could it possibly be?"

"I'll have the pendant," Agnès said now, without answering her. "We'll check in on you every other hour, but please - "

"You and Tiz are going to Caldisla for the whole day and you're going to _enjoy_ yourselves. We've got this down. Everything's fine."

Tiz opened the door, leaning back in. "Don't forget to tell Edea where the extra clothes are."

"Right," Agnès nodded to him as Ringabel yanked him back outside, the brunet man yelping with surprise. "If he causes too much of a mess, put his clothes in the yellow bin in the washroom. We'll wash them tomorrow. His clothes are in the wicker cupboard in our room."

"How messy could one baby get?" Edea laughed, but her smile faded at the look in Agnès's eyes. "Right… right. We got this."

If her words had soothed Agnès's nerves, the way that Toivo began to fuss as she gathered her bag and headed to the door without him seemed to frazzle them again. It was his first time being separated from them too, after all. By the time she and Tiz reached the gate that separated their property from the Norende main road, he was crying and reaching for her. Edea struggled not to drop him as he squirmed, at least not while his parents were sight, especially as they kept glancing back at the group in the doorway.

"A little help here?" she hissed to Ringabel, who was covering his ears. He seemed startled, then looked down at the red faced baby before scooping him up.

Edea grimaced; the littlest Arrior had a strong grip, and that grip was currently around her hair. With Ringabel holding firm to the baby, she carefully extracted her hair.

"There there," Ringabel said, in what he apparently thought was a soothing voice. Edea rolled her eyes at him; it was the same voice he used - had used - when trying to pick up girls.

"Don't try to charm his diaper off," Edea said. "He needs that."

Ringabel stuck his tongue out at her. "Let's go inside," he suggested, not waiting for an answer as he swept back indoors. The Arrior farm was far enough away from its neighbors that he doubted anyone would be able to hear the baby's crying, but perhaps going back into more familiar territory would dry his tears.

It was his hope, at least. Little Toivo continued to wail, thrashing his fists and kicking his legs against the man who was holding him. "Oof," Ringabel said as a tiny foot connected with his stomach. "Which Asterisk are we giving him? I vote Monk."

"I think Tiz said he isn't allowed to have an Asterisk until he's at least 16, though," Edea said, tugging at her hair as the cries continued. She stared at Ringabel as he tried, unsuccessfully, to get the baby to stop crying. "Maybe your face is scaring him. I know that it scares me sometimes."

Ringabel frowned at her as he held the baby out at arm's length. "I thought you liked my face."

"Only sometimes. Make him stop!"

"I'm trying!" Ringabel yelped, and he held the baby close now, cringing as Toivo's strong fists grabbed onto his shirt, yanking hard. He sat down, hoping that this would help, and bounced the baby slightly, unsuccessfully. What a pair of lungs. "Edea, honey, I think this needs a woman's touch."

Edea had huddled on the furthest end of the love seat from him. "That's sexist."

Ringabel flushed, despite the baby screaming in his ear. "A woman's touch makes _me_ feel better!" he hissed. "Help."

"That's weird," Edea said, but she scooted closer despite her protests, and held her hands out to take the baby from him. Ringabel transferred the tot over, wiping his hands on his shirt once they were free.

Edea bounced Tovio slightly on her lap, cooing at him over his cries. "Come on, Toivo. You're almost as big a crybaby as Yew!"

"Almost."

"Quiet," she told her husband, but the baby had begun to settle down, accepting his fate. He knew Edea and Ringabel from their previous visits to the house, even if he did not seem to like how his parents had up and left him, presumably forever, with the weirdest couple to set foot in Norende. Edea rubbed his plump, reddened cheeks one thumb as she held him with the other arm. "That wasn't so bad, was it?"

"I knew you could do it," Ringabel said, leaning back. His eyes swept over her. "A woman's touch indeed."

"That's still sexist," Edea retorted, but all the same, it was her turn to flush at his gaze. Leaning back herself, she kicked at him with a foot. Ringabel yelped when it made contact with his thigh.

"Is this what you want to be teaching him?" the man asked, rubbing his leg.

Edea sighed heavily. "That he shouldn't make such remarks to women? Of course that's what we want to be teaching him. You think Tiz and Agnès would settle for anything less?"

"You… do have a point," Ringabel admitted, accepting defeat. He slouched somewhat, then stole a glance at his wife as she continued to sooth the baby. By now, his sniffles were calming as he clung to her. "But you do look good with a baby, you know."

Edea closed her eyes, telling herself that Agnès and Tiz would probably not appreciate their child being witness to repeated acts of violence… and that Ringabel was just being Ringabel. "You don't have to keep saying that," she finally settled on, nudging his leg with her foot.

Ringabel moved her feet into his lap, and scooted over enough that he could run his fingers over Toivo's hair, prompting the baby to turn his face away into Edea's shoulder.

"I wouldn't want to be touched by you either," Edea pointed out to him.

" _You_ don't have to be so mean," he pouted, but then he turned so that he could rest his head on her shoulder while he continued to pat the child's shoulder. Edea couldn't punch him if her hands were full of a baby!

For a few moments, the three sat there, giving Toivo time to calm down and adjust to the two people who would be watching him for the evening. Ringabel found himself watching the boy as his tears dried up, hoping that he wouldn't cry again, while Edea watched the way the child's hands clung to her shirt. She was certain that Agnès had wiped his hands right before she'd left, but they still felt sticky. Well, she hadn't worn any of her good clothes, because she knew enough about caring for babies to know that would just end in disaster.

When the baby began to squirm, both adults tensed, only to relax as he twisted around and reached for Ringabel

"I think he likes me!" Ringabel said, happily taking the child into his arms. When he was sitting like this, it was much easier for him to grasp the boy, even when Toivo attempted to stand on chubby little legs.

Edea brushed off her top. "Well, I hope so. We're stuck with you until the evening."

Ringabel laughed. "You know you like me too."

"Somehow, yes," Edea replied, but she smiled at her husband when he bounced Toivo gently on his leg, keeping a firm grip on the child's waist, even causing the boy to giggle. "I guess you two get along so well because you're so alike."

Toivo was attempting to toddle closer to Ringabel - or to Ringabel's hair at least, his small fingers digging into Ringabel's arms. Ringabel didn't seem to notice the strong grip, looking over at Edea, opening his mouth to inquire… then shutting it, shaking his head. He didn't need to ask. She laughed, bouncing to her feet.

"Now that's done, let's see… what did Tiz say about what we need to do?"

Ringabel leaned his head back in an attempt to keep the baby's grasping hands away from his hair. "He just ate, so he should be fine for a few hours. If he seems sleepy, we should try to put him down for a nap, but…" Toivo did not seem sleepy, even after all of his crying.

"We could always use Sleep spells," Edea mused. "Then if he's asleep for a while, it'll be easy."

Ringabel stared at her. "You can't use Sleep spells on a baby!" Tiz and Agnès would both kill them, and besides, it was widely known that Sleep spells could easily mess up a child's sleeping patterns.

"It was a joke!" she replied, putting her hands up as she stood. "Why don't I clean up around here and you entertain him. Your face is good for making people laugh, after all."

Ringabel picked Toivo up and placed him down on the couch, twisting his own torso so that he could face the infant. He was old enough to stand up and toddle, at least with the help of an adult, but his feet were beginning to hurt, digging into Ringabel's thighs as they were. "You already said my face was scary," he said, glancing up at her. "What's wrong? This isn't like you."

Edea sighed as she walked back into the kitchen, picking up a washcloth so that she could wipe down the kitchen table. It still contained remnants of the food and tea the adults had eaten earlier, and she knew Tiz and Agnès would appreciate the help. It also meant that cleaning up in here meant she didn't have to answer Ringabel immediately, and could take the time to gather her thoughts. She knew some of what she was saying was a little harsh, but…

Seeing Ringabel happily playing with a baby had scared her, in a way. She rubbed vigorously at the coffee stains from earlier.

Not that it was genuinely frightening, because the baby was cute and Ringabel was sort of cute as well, but she knew he desperately wanted children, and they had held off on starting their family until she was ready, and until the country and its allies were stable enough that she could reliably take time off to begin her family. With the finalization of the contract with the Crystal Guard several months ago, and Ringabel being formally recognized as the Commander of the Eternian Army, there was no time like the present.

Seeing Ringabel with a baby made her chest and stomach feel a little… funny. On him, it wasn't really a bad look. Certainly it made him look mature, and reliable, and…

Ringabel emerged in the kitchen with the Toivo on his hip. "Did you hear me?" he asked, raising an eyebrow at her. Toivo gurgled at her.

"I heard you," she replied, scrubbing at a particularly stubborn spot of old, crusty baby food. "I was just thinking what we should do next."

Ringabel decided not to push getting an answer from her from now. Instead, he plopped Toivo onto the edge of the table, keeping a firm grip on him; at this age the boy could easily stay sitting up, but he was still in danger of rolling off and hitting the floor. It had already happened to him once when he was a child, and neither of the blondes wanted it to happen again under their watch. "Well, he's in a good mood. Why don't we relax for a bit? Perhaps even put him down for a nap?"

She looked over at the chubby child. He was wiggling slightly, waving his arms around. "He doesn't seem very tired." And she knew enough about babies to know you couldn't just make them sleep. At least, not without sleep spells.

"We just have to tire him out," Ringabel claimed, one hand on the child's back and the other on an arm, enthusiastically waving Toivo's hand around. "Play with him, make him laugh, make him run - toddle - about… he'll get tired in no time, and then we'll have some time alone to talk."

Edea groaned. "It's not that easy, Ringabel," she told him with a shake of her head. "If you think it was that easy, would Tiz and Agnès always be so tired?"

Ringabel looked down at the cherubic child, who gave him a wide, mostly toothless smile. He returned it. Edea felt her heart flip over. "Consider it practice," he said.

Did he have to say it like that? She wanted to toss the dirty dishcloth on his head.

She settled for leaning against the table instead. "Okay," she started. "If you think you're the … master of babies, you try to tire him out, oh wise one."

"I'll have you know I'm great with kids," Ringabel replied, sticking his tongue out at her. "They love me. Besides, it won't be so bad to play with him. I mean, sure he's little and not very entertaining, but we can't just sit around and stare at him!"

"We did volunteer to watch him." They had practically demanded it, so that Tiz and Agnès could have a long overdue night to themselves. Edea had been thrilled at the idea of spending time with her godchild; she had spent the night over at the house with the Arrior family sparingly, and it had been when Toivo was much smaller, spending the majority of his time either asleep, wrapped in a sling on his mother's chest, or both. But now that he was older, and bigger, and his grip was strong and sticky, she had no idea what to do.

Plopping down on a chair, she dragged it over to sit beside Ringabel and the infant, poking the child gently in his side to make him giggle. "But… what kind of games do you play with babies?" she asked, hesitantly. "You think he's too young to hold a sword?"

"Of course he is, dearest," Ringabel said. "You have to wait until he can walk on his own two feet. Give it a couple of months, at least."

Toivo was gripping Ringabel's fingers in one fist, the other clutching the end of a table mat. Edea watched him for another second before offering her hand to him, smiling when he let go of the mat to grab her. She waved her hand gently, not breaking his grip. He wiggled and kicked his feet with joy, gurgling at the two blondes.

"Okay," she agreed with a smile. "How about for his second birthday?" She had received her first sword for her third, but this little guy had a good grip, and good Arrior genes. He'd be a pro. Her first apprentice.

Then she wrinkled her nose. When the child had wiggled, a very noticeable, distinct smell had wafted up.

"But first, I think you need to change his diaper," she said, leaning back.

Ringabel also had wrinkled his nose. "What? Why me?" he asked, trapped by the child's grip.

Edea had successfully retrieved her hand, and now she was wiping it down with the dishcloth, making a note to get a clean one to wipe Toivo's hands with, as well. They were sticky. "Didn't you say it earlier? It's practice." She stood up. "I'll leave you to it!"

Ringabel attempted to follow, but Toivo's grip held him fast. "Traitor!" he cried after her retreating figure. "Double-crosser!"

She waved at him from the kitchen entry way, then vanished before he could go after.


	2. Chapter 2

Once he had managed to pull his grip from the baby's long enough to scoop him up, Ringabel found himself attempting to wrangle a wriggly, smelly baby on top of the large dresser in the Arriors' bedroom, where a small wicker basket been set aside as a sort of changing area, complete with diapers, powder, and wipes.

Here, he struggled to get the child to sit still long enough for Ringabel to undress him, cursing quietly under his breath (the last thing he needed was for Toivo to pick up a new word from him before he'd even spoke his first!) He'd watched Tiz and Agnès both change diapers plenty of times, had even coached Barras through changing a diaper or two! But it was different now that it was in his hands. How did they make it look so easy?

"Stay still, please," he begged the child as he tried once more to pull the smock up over of his head. It too, needed to be changed, but Toivo was tearing up again, his face crumpling. And when he teared up, he kicked, trying to roll to his front. In his haste to keep the boy in place, Ringabel knocked the clean diaper of the end of the counter to the floor.

Ringabel didn't dare take his hand off Toivo's belly and risk the child falling.

"Edea!" he called. He knew she was within earshot, if not only because the cabin was small. Tiz had been talking about expanding it, but he'd wanted to wait a couple of years until Toivo really needed his own space. "I need help!"

She peeked around the side of the door. "I thought you had this?"

"I will," he insisted. "But the diaper on the floor… please get it," he all but begged. The last thing he wanted to do was take off the existing diaper without the replacement close at hand. He'd heard things. He'd seen things. He wasn't prepared for that challenge yet.

To his relief, his wife did as asked and though her nose was crinkled due to the smell of a dirty diaper, she swooped in and handed the clean one to him. Then, she sat back on the bed to watch him continue to struggle with the baby, folding her hands over her knees.

Carefully, slowlyyyyy… Ringabel unpinned the diaper and watched Toivo's face as he unfolded the diaper. The child watched him back. Ringabel stuck his tongue and Toivo laughed. Edea smiled.

In far too many minutes later, the child was successfully changed, both in diaper and in a fresh clean smock. Ringabel passed the boy to Edea, who took him readily, and collapsed beside her on the bed. "I'm tagging out," he said with a loud sigh, pressing his face into the comforter.

Edea leaned back onto the bed, lifting the boy above her head cautiously. She'd seen Tiz get thrown up on more than once doing this same thing. "Tired already? It's been less than an hour!"

Ringabel rolled over to his side to watch her as she lowered the baby, pressed her nose to his, and then lifted him back up effortlessly. Of course she did. He knew for a fact that she could bench press more than the baby weighed. "I can't keep him all to myself, can I? You have to watch him too."

"I am watching him," Edea replied, and there was a smile on her lips because Toivo was laughing with glee at the game they were playing. "See? He's playing!" With a whooshing noise, she maneuvered him through the air, steering him this way and that.

Ringabel draped an arm over her stomach. "I see that. You're playing, too."

"Duh. Babies can be fun, when they're old enough to be interesting."

He propped himself up on an elbow so they could talk more properly, his eyes on her face. "You don't like the idea of caring for a newborn?" He knew that while Edea had spent time with the Arriors soon after the birth of their first child, most of her visit had been helping Tiz around the farmstead along with Yew. Magnolia had been the one who had been at Agnès's side most of the day, he'd heard, though of course Edea had her fair share of being with her best friend.

"They're so small," she said, now lowering Toivo to sit on her stomach next to Ringabel's arm, where clutched here hand. "So small, and they can't do anything for themselves, not even eat or sit up. What if you break one accidentally?"

He laughed. "You can't just break them accidentally! Don't worry so much, Edea. You're doing fine. Besides…"

"Is this the part where you say something weird like "it's different when it's your own"?" She gave him a Look that made him smile uneasily back at her.

"No," he lied. "I was going to say that they grow up so quickly that the 'boring' stage isn't very long at all. Look at Toivo, for example. Tiz told me that last month he couldn't even stand on his own feet. Now he can walk if he's leaning on something. Soon he'll be running on his own. That's just how kids are."

Toivo was now attempting to gnaw on her hand, trying to draw it up to his mouth. Edea did her best to keep her fingers down and away from his gums.

"It still takes months," she pointed out, but there was a slight smile on her face all the same. "And he's awfully small for being nearly a year old."

"Tiz said he was a small child as well," Ringabel said, sounding thoughtful. "Though it begs the question if any child of ours would inherit my height or yours. Perhaps your father's, as well!"

The look Edea gave him was nothing short of pained. "Ringabel…"

She cut off with a gasp when Toivo suddenly spit up, spewing across her hand, covering his freshly changed smock in the process. Ringabel's hand snapped behind the child, keeping him from falling onto his back as Edea sat up, pulling her dirtied hand away.

Toivo, startled by the sudden motion, starting crying. Edea stared with dismay at his red, scrunched up face, feeling guilty. It wasn't the first time she'd been spit up on, considering all the times she had held and played with him, especially when he was small. It had just startled her, was all.

"I just changed him!" Ringabel commented unhappily, but he was already picking up the child to change him again, using the hem of the smock to wipe his face. Edea held her hand out gingerly as she carefully got off the bed.

"I'll be right back," she said, swiping her other hand down her stomach - it was clean and not wet - as she slid out of the room to go to the restroom, leaving the crying child behind.

As soon as she had washed and dried her hand, she came back to the sight of her husband cuddling the baby to his shoulder, rubbing his bare back as the baby continued to cry, wailing at the top of his lungs. Ringabel had removed the dirty smock once again but had yet to replace it with a new one in favor of trying to calm the child first before he made himself sick.

She could barely him over Tovio's cries, but recognized that he was humming, a tune that sounded familiar, though she couldn't place it. His eyes were closed as he moved slightly in place, his hand gentle on the baby's back as he attempted to calm him down. Edea watched for a few moments, biting her lip and trying not to picture Ringabel holding the baby in one of the rooms that was currently connected to their own, one that was currently used for storing their extra clothes.

She sighed.

Ringabel jumped when Edea placed her hand on his hip. He opened one eye to look at her. "What's wrong?"

"I'll take him," Edea said. Toivo was still crying, but he had by now gone down a few decibels, comforted by Ringabel's movements. "Didn't you say it takes a woman's touch?"

" _You_ also said it was sexist," he pointed out, but he was already transferring the baby into her arms, both of them grimacing as Toivo's cries started anew as he was moved from one person to another.

"I think he likes me more," Ringabel whispered, his mouth very close to Edea's ear in order to be heard.

She tried to ignore the burning in her cheeks as she let the baby cling to her, his wet face pressing into her neck. Instead, she focused on bouncing him slightly, rubbing her cheek against his head. "It's because you're so alike."

Ringabel laughed, but his arm wound around her and he held her tightly, one of his hand lifting so that he could continue to rub Toivo's back as Edea held him. "You never hold _me_ like this when I cry," Ringabel said after a moment.

"And when was the last time you cried?" Edea asked, her voice quiet. Toivo was no longer screaming, but he was still distressed, his small body shaking. She kissed the top of his head.

"Last week," he reminded her. "That was a particularly moving play."

Edea wanted to roll her eyes. Instead, she leaned against him. "You're scaring the baby." Now that he wasn't flailing about as he screamed, she could lift a hand to run it against his hair. His brown locks were soft and down-light, almost as dark as his mother's, and full of baby curls that Tiz and Agnes had both assumed would eventually grow out but loved all the same.

Ringabel fell silent, and she thanked her lucky stars, closing her eyes as she continued to sway gently with the child in her arms until her arms began to ache. She glanced down at him. His plump cheeks were red but his eyes were closed as he leaned against her.

One of her fingers moved from his head to his nose, bopping it gently. His eyes scrunched but didn't open.

"Is it safe?" she asked Ringabel.

His gaze followed hers. "I think so," he whispered. Edea sighed in relief and attempted to pull the baby away from her so that they could put him in a new smock - but the moment that she tried, his eyes flew open and he let out a wail, clinging to her top. She grimaced and pulled him back.

"Why don't you lie down with him?" Ringabel suggested, his hand steady on the baby's back. "I think he'll like that. Maybe he misses his mother."

In this moment, Edea missed his mother too. Surely she would know how to handle her crying baby. His screams had grated her nerves, but also worried her. Babies shouldn't cry that long, should they?

"Alright," she agreed, and kept the baby cuddled to her chest as she carefully climbed onto the master bed, rolling onto her back. He let out a squawk, but otherwise did not react. Ringabel paused to remove his boots, then reached over for hers.

"What are you doing?" she asked, though she lifted her foot to help him. It wouldn't be nice to get dirt on the clean comforter.

"I'll lay down with you," he said, smiling. "At least until he's actually asleep."

Edea groaned. It wasn't that she didn't appreciate Ringabel's company - she did, she had married him after all - but she was already having to cuddle a baby. She didn't want to think what she might feel if he were to join them. It'd be like they were a family. "You don't have to."

"I know."

That was about as much as she would protest. Edea sat propped up against the numerous pillows with the infant on her chest, letting him continue to cuddle into her. Ringabel lay beside her, on his side facing her, his hand on the baby's back. Watching her husband's face, gentle and caring, as he looked over their charge made her stomach twist. She could very easily imagine him doing this with a child of their own, perhaps soon after birth, and…

Edea swallowed. She waited until the baby's breathing was a bit more even. "You're enjoying this too much," she said to Ringabel, turning slightly to face him. The baby's fist once again clenched her top but otherwise he didn't stir.

Ringabel grinned at her. "You're just so cute like this."

"What?"

"All cute and cuddly with a baby," he started, and she cut off him, trying not to squirm.

"Ringabel, don't…"

"I know," he said. "I know that you're worried about having kids together. I want them, and you're still unsure."

Edea bit her lip, but decided not to say anything. Of course he knew. They'd talked about having children just a few months ago, right after their wedding. At the time, she'd told him it was much too early, considering that they were newlywed and still trying to iron things out in Eternia. She'd promised to talk about it later. Did this count as later?

He continued after a moment when she didn't speak, his hand slowly stroking the sleeping Toivo's back. "I married you because I love you. Not because of any future possible children."

"You've always wanted a family," she recalled.

Ringabel grinned at her. "And I already have one with you, don't I?"

Toivo let out a soft noise, nestling further against her chest in his sleep. Edea glanced down at him, then back to Ringabel. "Of course you do." This wasn't really the ideal time or place to be having a heart to heart conversation about the possibility of expanding their family, though. Now that he was asleep, Toivo really was very precious. She didn't mind continuing to cuddle him… and didn't mind the idea of cuddling a baby of her own. No, no. She needed to think about this in a more… unbiased location. Turning slightly to her side, she attempted to roll the baby onto his back between Ringabel and herself, supporting his head carefully so that he didn't wake himself up with any jarring movements.

To her relief, he stayed asleep, tired out from his exciting day and from his screaming earlier. Ringabel had to reach over and help remove his grip from her blouse, but in just a few moment's time, the baby was sleeping on his parents' bed, his godparents watching him from either side.

He kicked one little foot.

"We should cover him," Ringabel said, and he cautiously climbed out of the bed to fetch one of the many baby blankets strewn around the room. Edea watched him, nodding. There was no way that they could possibly dress the baby without waking him, but she didn't think his parents would appreciate it if they let him lay around with only a diaper on.

When Ringabel returned to drape the blue blanket over the child's form, tucking him carefully, she sat up. "Do we leave him here?" Edea asked.

Ringabel nodded. "We may as well. As long as we check in on him every so often, he should be fine." To be on the safe side, they surrounded the child with pillows, to keep him from falling off if he were to roll over, before retreating back to the doorway, watching him all the way.

"Sleep tight," Ringabel called, throwing a kiss at the child's still form before he closed the door nearly all the way, keeping only the slightest gap open.

Edea elbowed him in the side. "Just remember to keep quiet so you don't wake him up."

"Me? Be loud? Never!"

As they moved away from the doorway, beginning to bicker, Toivo stirred.


	3. Chapter 3

Edea sighed loudly as she collapsed onto the couch dramatically, drawing a hand to her forehead. "Babies are hard work," she complained, but there was a slight smile on her face all the same. She could still feel where the baby had been curled up on her chest. It was warm.

Then, she groaned in slight discomfort as Ringabel laid out on top of her, his full weight squashing her down into the couch. It wasn't the first time he'd done something like this, and it was actually a little pleasant once he got situated but still, he was heavy and sometimes he dug his hands into tender places. She let her hands rest on his hips, pushing slightly to warn him that she could, if she wanted to, throw him over the side of the couch and into the wall. She'd done it before.

He nestled his head on her shoulder, his breath hot against her neck. "But he's so cute," Ringabel commented, grinning at her from under his ridiculous pompadour. She could just barely see how bright his eyes were. "Not as cute as ours will be, of course."

"Don't let Agnès hear you say that," Edea murmured. Her heart hammered at the idea of 'their' baby. He'd have blonde hair, of course… but she wasn't sure what color eyes. Her blue eyes, or Ringabel's more-uncommon hazel? Curly hair or straight? Would he be tall or more vertically challenged? Given that both her husband and her father were much taller than she, she would like to look down on someone for once, though she supposed that any child would have to take a while to grow.

"Of course not. I'm not suicidal, Edea." He sighed loudly to himself, then declared, "I will say that Toivo is our cutest godchild."

He was their only godchild, so far. So far. Edea had given Agnès a calendar of how many godchildren she wanted over the next ten years, and the next one was scheduled to be born in two years (giving Agnès and Tiz ample time to recover from their first, but he needed a sibling soon, and they shouldn't wait so long as to not be able to recycle his baby things!) She wasn't sure if Agnès even had the calendar even more, but Edea had made backup copies, just in case.

"Alright, I'll agree to that," she said. It was true. Then she looked down at Ringabel. "What if they decide to have Yew and Magnolia be the godparents of their next?"

"They can't," Ringabel replied, and then he yawned. "We called dibs."

"You're not going to sleep, are you?" She wound her arm around his shoulder. "We're supposed to be keeping an eye on the baby." Still, she knew Ringabel's sleeping habits by now. He was hard-pressed to stay awake in the afternoon, preferring to take naps so that he could stay up later and wake up early. It was about time for his afternoon nap, just like any baby.

"He's asleep," Ringabel pointed out. "Asleep, and he won't be waking up for a while. We can take a quick nap, can't we?"

It was tempting. It had only been about an hour since Agnès and Tiz left, but it felt like much longer. They still had the rest of the afternoon and evening with him, and she knew from past experience that he tended to be more awake during those times. Depending on how long it took for the couple to return from the city, Edea might need to sleep and leave Ringabel awake to watch the baby.

"You can take a nap," she said, fully realizing that she was still trapped underneath his weight. "I'll stay awake, and if I fall asleep later, it'll be your turn."

He nodded. "Like taking look-out shifts."

She bit her lip, then nodded. "We can hear him from here if he cries, so… that's fine, right?" She threaded her hands into her husband's hair, ignoring his protest. As tempting as it was to mess up his pompadour, he would complain the rest of the evening, and it really was just easier to concentrate on the back of his hair, where there was less product and attention overall, and where he really liked it when she used her nails against his sensitive scalp. Of course, it was hardly the time to start things…

"It's settled then," he said, and closed his eyes. Edea let out a soft noise as she felt him begin to fall asleep, his breathing evening out. She wiggled her hand into his pocket to pull out his journal. It was no longer the journal he'd carried around on their journey, full of his past memories and his observations of the people and events that were happening, but one that was filled with dates and information and notes on their work at home. He liked to keep track of these things in writing and carry it around him, while Edea preferred her mental notes and calendar comments. Her calendar, of course, had been left in the office and while they wouldn't be working during the few days vacation they had taken to come and see the Arriors, she wanted to keep reminded on what she'd have to do when she returned.

And it was pretty much the only thing that she could do while Ringabel lay on top of her. Sure, she'd spotted some books that Agnès had, but those had been on a high shelf in the bedroom, well out of the baby's reach, and she hadn't thought to bring them out to the room. She couldn't possibly get up now, and she yet to master the art of telekinesis.

For some time, she lay there as her husband rested, thumbing through his notebook. It was peaceful, quiet…

Too quiet.

Something bothered her right at the edges of her mind. Ringabel was asleep and peaceful, his face relaxed. Toivo was asleep in the bedroom, hopefully happily dreaming whatever babies dreamed of. If he needed them, he'd scream or cry, right? Right?

Edea shifted uncomfortably. She should probably check on him, just in case. Maybe he was a quiet crier when he woke up… or something.

Ringabel's eyes opened when she tried to squirm out from under him. "Mmngh?" he asked, his voice thick with sleep.

"I'm going to check on him," she said, kissing his forehead. Grumbling to himself, the man rolled off her and to the side of the couch, pressing against the back as much as he could. It was enough that Edea could slide out from under him and roll to the floor, then stand. "And when I get back, I'm going to be on top this time."

He'd closed his eyes already, but she could see a smirk on his face and his eyebrows waggle. It was enough to make her laugh, and she smacked his hip and the side of his butt.

Then, she stepped toward the bedroom.

Inside, it was quiet and still. Immediately, she knew something was wrong. Her heart leaped into her throat when she noticed that the bed was empty. The blue blanket that they had tucked around him was laying abandoned; the pillows were in disarray.

Ringabel came up behind her at a run; Edea realized then that she had screamed.

"What's - oh. Oh no," he breathed, taking in the scene.

"He can't have gotten far," Edea said as she moved into the room. Toivo was crawling around, but he wasn't walking. He had probably just wiggled out of the bed and - there were a couple of pillows on the floor, she noticed, coming around the side. Had they been there before?

"No," Ringabel replied. "No, he - " He choked up, his face going nearly as pale as his hair.

Edea threw one of the pillows at him. "Get it together!" she hissed. They were not going to tell Agnès and Tiz that they had lost their child. This meant they had to find him as soon as possible and never speak of it again.

Ringabel gave her a watery glance before he pressed his lips together, took a deep breath, and nodded.

The windows were all closed; Edea hoped that this ruled out of any sort of kidnapping attempt. Tiz and Agnès were well known to live in Norende, but the existence of their child wasn't widely known, despite the months since his birth. Besides, who would kidnap such an adorable kid, and one who was related to not only the Miracle of Norende and the last Pope of Crystalism, but who also the godchild of the Grand Marshal of Eternia? There was no way.

She ducked down to look under the bed. Nothing was there except for dusty old boxes.

Ringabel was stripping the bedsheets off the bed, as though Toivo might have been hiding in them. He piled comforters, pillows, and sheets in one corner of the room until the bed was bare, and empty. "Do you think he might have left the room?" Ringabel asked.

"I think we would have noticed if he was in the living room with us," Edea replied, though she wasn't entirely sure that was true. He'd been asleep and she'd been distracted. From now on, she decided, Ringabel wasn't allowed to take naps ever again. He would have to suffer through the daytime hours like the rest of them.

There were a few wooden chests in the room that she knew from past experience held seasonal clothing for storage. Now she opened them just to be sure the baby hadn't somehow gotten inside one. Ringabel began to rummage through the standing closet in one side of the room. Together, the two of them tore the room apart.

Then, Edea was aware of - Tiz and Agnès's voices? Horrified, she glanced toward the door. Were the Arriors home already? This meant that they would discover their missing child, and then Edea and Ringabel would never be allowed to babysit again.. But instead of familiar faces, all she saw was the flickering of light…

It took her a moment to recognize what the light was. The pendant!

She recalled Agnès promising to check in every couple of hours. Oh.

Thinking fast, Edea rocked to her feet and turned to Ringabel. "Stay here!" she hissed as she ran into the living room. They had left their shard of the pendant on the dining table, along with their bags and Ringabel's sketchbook. Now, she scooped it up into her hands.

"Agnès!" Edea said, laughing lightly as she caught sight of the brown-haired woman in the tiny image displayed. "What are you doing?"

Agnès, as far as she could tell, was in the lobby of the arena in Caldisla that she and Tiz had gone to. A troupe of circus performers from Eisenberg were travelling to different ports to show off their skills, and the tickets had been a belated anniversary present from Edea and Ringabel. It had taken three months to convince them that Toivo would be old enough to be alright without his parents for the time it would take them to travel to the town, watch the show, have dinner at a nice restaurant, and travel back.

"Just checking in," Agnès said nervously, wringing her hands. "How is he?"

"Never better!" Edea replied, hoping that her own nervousness wasn't visible. "He's been a good boy. He's napping, now."

"Is he?" Agnès sounded relieved. "I had hoped he wouldn't find it too hard to sleep around strangers. When Mrs. Baker watches him for us, he usually doesn't sleep."

"Well… Ringabel's good with kids," Edea decided to say. "It's probably because they're so alike. Where's Tiz?"

"Tiz is in the arena. I had to come out and see how everything was."

"…. are you sure that's a good idea? How are you going to find your way back to your seat?" That was the last thing they needed. Both Agnès and the baby getting lost.

Agnès paused. "I'm right outside the door! I'm certain I can make my way back inside and to the left… or was it the right?"

Oh boy. Edea shook her head. "Agnès, just relax and enjoy the show! Focus on getting back to your seat. Everything's fine here, really!" It wasn't really a lie if no one had died yet, right?

In the bedroom, a large thump sounded.

Agnès looked as though she wanted to keep talking, possibly to demand Edea show some sort of proof that the baby hadn't sprouted wings and flown off or something like that, but Edea forcibly cut the connection off, and tucked the pendant piece into her bag, so that nothing would be seen or heard if Agnès decided to call back.

"Ringabel?" she called. "What was that?" If he had found the baby, hopefully he hadn't just been dropped. Ringabel had dropped him once already, when he was younger,

"Just some items in their wardrobe!" Ringabel called back. "I still can't find him!"

Her head was beginning to hurt. Surely Ringabel hadn't pulled items down from the top shelf of the wardrobe. It wasn't as though the baby could float… could he? Actually, it was best to be sure.

She rejoined him, and together the two of them continued to look through the master bedroom. Soon though, they had to stop and rest, and in doing so she had a moment to think and breathe and feel like crying.

And Edea very rarely felt like crying. The last time she had cried had been when… Ringabel had once again returned, sweeping up to her as if his reappearance was a normal occurrence and she should have been expecting him. She'd punched him then, for being such an idiot.

She punched him now as they collapsed (carefully) on Tiz and Agnès's bare bed. Around them, the room was in tatters. The bedding was piled in one corner of the room, having been moved around several times just in case the child might be hiding in it. They had rifled through all the boxes under the bed. They had even cleared out the clothing out from the wardrobes, just in case he had climbed in there. No sign of the child.

Ringabel groaned at the punch but otherwise didn't complain, burying his face into the mattress. They were both sweaty from exertion.

"We're dead," Edea said after she could breathe without her side seizing up. Her back ached slightly. "I can't believe we lost the Arriors' child in less than three hours. Is this a record?"

"He has his mother's sense of direction," Ringabel replied, voice muffled. She propped her feet up on his legs.

"If I were a toddler, where would I go?" she asked herself out loud, ignoring him. "Think, Ringabel! What would you do at his age? What did you do at his age?"

Ringabel propped his head up just enough to give her an incredulous look. "Don't ask me," he said, eyes wide. "At that age, I was crawling around in the sewer and trying not to die of exposure. I think I stabbed a man, once."

Edea cringed, at once regretting asking him that, even rhetorically. Of course, he'd done more than just get lost. Thinking fast, she tried think back to her own childhood, but found she could not. What had she done at that age? Her mother's stories of Edea's childhood had been all about how she'd been adorable and precocious and liked to try on her mother's clothes and play with her father's swords (until he had wised up and starting putting them out of her reach). Sometimes she had done as such at the same time. Then, there were all those stories about her slipping outside and giving everyone a fright….

"You don't think he got outside, do you?" she asked after another moment's thought, turning to him. "Maybe he sneaked by us when you were sleeping? After this, you're not allowed to sleep anymore. When we have kids, you're just going to have to stay awake forever. Sorry."

"We locked the - oh, when we have kids?" he interrupted himself, raising an eyebrow. "I believe our children would be better behaved, with a better sense of direction. But with their mother's fieryness, of course."

"Keep focused," she said, shaking her head at him.

"We locked the door," he finished. "And an infant would be hard pressed to unlock it. He can't even reach the doorknob. No, he's somewhere inside, and we just have to find him. You didn't see him? You were awake!"

"You were on top of me!"

"I've been on top of you plenty of times, and you usually pay attention to your surroundings," he leered, and Edea shoved him off the bed. He landed on the floor with a grunt and did not move.

There was a child's laugh.

Edea bolted up. At any other time, hearing a child's laughter would be nothing short of disturbing. She'd heard plenty of horror stories of ghosts and haunted houses, after all, but in this case a child's laugh was supposed to be around.

There, at the edge of the bed, Toivo Arrior grinned up at her, clutching the end of the mattress to keep himself standing. She stared at him. He giggled back at her, all gum and dimples.

"Where have you been?" Ringabel asked the toddler. He crawled over on his hands and knees, not bothering to stand. Toivo stuck a hand in his mouth and grabbed the man's hand with his other hand when he was close enough.

"He can't talk yet," Edea reminded him. Well, Toivo was babbling by now, repeating his favorite words back at people, but he had yet to form full sentences. Which was a shame, because Edea wanted to know what sort of black magic this child had just used to disappear and reappear out of thin air. It would come in handy for meetings.

Her heart was settling down, its beat going back to normal. She swung around until she lay on her stomach on the bed, reaching out to grasp the toddler's head in her hands.

"Young man," she said quite seriously. "You're grounded."

She'd always wanted to say that.

'Grounded' consisted of putting Toivo in the standing bathtub that was in the Arriors' bathroom. The boy did not have the coordination, nor the height, to climb out, and so Edea watched with a bit of catharsis as he slid around, wailing because he wanted to get out and cause more chaos. Take that! And that.

"Oh no," she said, as he slipped on his knees again. They had tied the bath curtain well out of his reach. "You're staying in there while we clean up."

They'd put toys in there with him, both plush and wooden-and-noise making. She and Ringabel weren't complete monsters, after all. Just two tired adults who refused to admit that they had been outsmarted by a child, for however short a period of time, and who needed to dispose of the evidence.

"You think they'll notice that we went through their room?" Ringabel asked as he refolded the clothes they'd tossed out of the wardrobe. Edea was working on making the bed, reaching back to all her military time to make sure she had it up to Tiz Arrior standards.

"Uh…" Edea thought for a moment. It was hard to think, because Toivo was yelling at them from the bathroom, and they had wisely decided not to close the door, just in case he pulled another disappearing act. "Hopefully not?"

"What should we say when they do?" he asked then, because they both knew that Tiz would suspect something was amiss, even if Agnès did not. Tiz had a sixth sense when it came to things like housework and cleaning, and he'd probably notice that the clothes were folded differently or something.

"I don't know! Don't jinx us!" she said, glaring at him.

"Well, I'm going to tell Tiz that we had sex on the bed," Ringabel said, smirking ever so slightly.

She threw one of those stupid decorative pillows at him, laughing unkindly as it hit him square in the face. He deserved it.

"Had sex on the bed and didn't clean up after ourselves?" she asked after a moment. Toivo was winding down, still whining and fussy, but no longer shouting at them from the top of his admittedly impressive toddler lungs. "I'm not changing the sheets, Ringabel! I'm already almost done." She had only to smooth all the wrinkles out and put the decorative pillows where they belonged.

Ringabel leered at her, which did not hold very well due to the pompadour that was now completely out of sorts. "Maybe we did laundry?" They would not have done laundry, because most of it was done by hand. "Or perhaps we laid down towels to catch any mess. Like that time we had sex in the - "

"Shh," she hissed. "He can hear you!" They did not need Toivo repeating any fun words he heard.

Ringabel stuck out his tongue.

Once they were finished cleaning up the room, hopefully thoroughly enough that Tiz and Agnès wouldn't question why their clothing was no longer in the same places that it had been in previously (Edea had tried, but she didn't have the patience to organize Agnès's panties by color and by size, as Agnès did), they swept back into the restroom to release Toivo from his prison.

He had long since resigned himself to his fate, sitting on his bottom in the bathtub and playing with his toys. When the two adults entered, he looked up at them, made a face, and looked back down at Mr. Hedgehog and Mrs. Pumpkin, who were currently going out on a date or something. Edea wasn't sure.

"Okay, buddy," she said, feeling oddly snubbed by a one-year-old. Was that normal? "You hungry?"

"I'm hungry," Ringabel replied.

"I'm not talking to you," she said, smacking him in the side with the back of her hand. Toivo giggled at her, and pulled himself up to his feet, bouncing slightly where he stood. "I'll take that as a yes," she decided, and picked him up.

He gurgled at her.

"Dinner it is! Ringabel, can you get the toys out of the bath?" Tiz and Agnès would ask too many questions otherwise. As her husband got started on gathering up the toys, she carried the toddler into the kitchen for dinner. She didn't know about him, but she was starving. She hadn't eaten in what… four hours? That was three hours too long.

Ringabel joined her in short order, just as she was pulling out the food that Agnès had lovingly prepared for her son earlier in the day.

"What's for dinner?" he asked, pulling up a chair next to Toivo. The toddler had been strapped into a booster seat already, flailing his arms about. Edea peered at two containers, wondering which one was peas and which one was spinach and if it really mattered which one she gave him. And where was the sugary stuff? She paused in her thinking to look up at her husband, ever the child himself. "Excuse me? You think I slaved over a hot stove all day to make dinner for you? You get the food!"

"You slaved over nothing," he pointed out, but stood from his chair anyway with a stretch and made his way to the icebox. Tiz and Agnès had left food for them for as well, since the two of them couldn't exactly go out to eat while babysitting, and Tiz had mentioned something about not trusting Edea in the kitchen. She wasn't sure what that he'd meant by that, but at the time been too busy listening to Agnès's instructions to ask.

As Ringabel was pulling out covered plates of a hardy country meal for the two of them, Edea spooned out portions of mashed peas and carrots and something that she thought was supposed to be chicken out on a plate for the child waiting for her. He was now practically bouncing in his seat as he watched her, opening his mouth like a little bird. To Edea, that was a little cute, but just a little. Then she paused.

"Do I have to feed him by hand? Or do you think he can hold the spoon?" she asked her husband, even as she mashed out the larger chunks with the back of the spoon. She had no idea how his parents fed him now. Last she'd been around him at mealtimes, it was Agnès who had exclusively been doing the feeding, and Edea couldn't exactly do that.

"Do you want to clean carrots from the ceiling?" he asked her dryly, giving her a wry grin. "I wouldn't recommend it. Here," he said, and reached over for the plate of baby food she held.

"What are you doing?"

"I'll feed him and you eat," he suggested. "I've seen it done before, likely more than you have. How hard could it be?"

Edea had her doubts, but she wasn't about to turn down a suggestion that she eat. Shrugging at him, she left him to it, picking up one of the plates that held real adult human food. Taking her place at the table, she watched her husband feed a small child with no prior experience. This was going to be great.

Ringabel pulled a chair close and scooped up a tiny bit of mashed peas on the edge of a spoon, holding it aloft Toivo's eyesight. She watched him, silently judging his technique.

"Here's an airship!" he crooned, punctuating with airship motor noises. The toddler opened his mouth, too distracted by the moving spoon to try and grab it, and Ringabel quickly swooped in and popped the spoon into his mouth.

Perhaps a little too quickly. Toivo, startled by the sudden metal-and-mash combination in his mouth, coughed and sputtered, ending up with most of the food on the front of his shirt. His face crumpled.

"A little more slowly next time?" Edea commented.

"Ah, perhaps." Ringabel had the grace to look guilty, and he reached up to with a conveniently nearby dishcloth to wipe the baby's face. "I'm going to have to change him again," the man commented as he scooped up more food.

His second attempt was more successful, with the spoon tapping the boy's lip until he'd closed his mouth around it. Ringabel flashed the boy a bright, winning smile and Edea felt her stomach do a flip-flop again. Neither of them had any business being so adorable.

Toivo considered the food in his mouth and swallowed it, then opened his mouth for more, and Edea ate her own food, though she actually chewed hers, as she watched Ringabel continue to feed the toddler.

"Hey Ringabel," she said, after a minute. She moved her chair closer to him.

He looked over at her in the middle of scooping up some of the carrots on the edge of the spoon. He'd been rotating throughout the different items. "What is it, my dear?"

"Feed me too." She tugged at his sleeve and opened her mouth, imitating the child in the room. Ringabel stared at her, hazel eyes nothing short of baffled and confused, before he laughed. The sound of it made her smile too, which sort of made it hard to keep her mouth open.

"Very well," he said, clearly intent on humoring her. "I'll show you my patented two-handed technique."

This technique wasn't at all impressive. Ringabel managed to spear a piece of meat onto a fork with his other hand and guide it into her mouth without stabbing her with it, his smile playful. He neglected to notice that his other hand was still, spoonful of food hovering in Toivo's reach. Having caught onto Ringabel by now, the boy grabbed the spoon and guided it into his own mouth, staring in confusion at the two adults who were supposed to be supervising him.

Edea chewed contently on her food as her husband went back to feeding their charge, once he'd noticed that the baby was pouting at him. Food really did taste better when someone else made it, and fed it to you. Babies had it great, she decided, and they weren't so bad all the time. Maybe it really was time to think about having their own.

Maybe.


	4. Chapter 4

They decided that, while they liked things a little wild and and a little crazy sometimes, neither of them wanted to explain to Tiz and Agnès that the Arrior toddler had been temporarily misplaced.

With that in mind, they also decided that the child had already tricked them once, and a repeat absolutely could not happen. Once Ringabel had finished feeding the child and started on his own food, Edea kept a close eye on Toivo. Just to be safe, she kept a good grip on him as well, holding his arm carefully in her hand as he played with her fingers with his own grubby ones.

While she could grudgingly admit that Ringabel had done a halfway decent job of feeding the boy, given that it was his first time attempting to do, a good amount of mashed food had ended up all over the child's front side. How long had it been? Less than an hour, surely. Though the boy had been wearing only a diaper when he'd pulled his disappearing act, they had managed to get him a smock before 'grounding him' in the tub, and now it was also filthy. They would have to change him _again._

"It's your turn" Ringabel reminded her when she said as such out loud. He'd gotten himself a cup of coffee - hopefully to stay awake - and was nursing that as he slowly ate his meal. Edea thought he might've been going so slow on purpose, so that he could beg out of changing the baby again.

"I don't know how to change a baby," she pointed out. She'd watch Agnès and Tiz do it plenty of times, but it was a new experience for her. Then again, if Ringabel could do it, why couldn't she?

"It isn't hard," Ringabel replied, and she wanted to smear the gravy of his country-fried steak into his hair at the smug grin he gave her. "You used to dress dolls as a child, did you not? It's much the same."

She huffed. "Ringabel, surely you remember how I treated my dolls."

His eyes flicked up as he thought. It wasn't that Edea had been… _terrible_ to her dolls or anything, oh no! She had just sometimes ritually sacrificed them to the gods or punished them for make-believe transgressions. When she'd finally grown old enough that her father trusted her to handle a sword, she had stopped playing with dolls altogether, though a few had been safely stored away, still tied up together from when she had dangled them above a pit of imaginary sharks.

"Well," he corrected himself slowly, because she could practically _see_ him remembering the time that she and Alternis had held a funeral for a doll that had been 'poisoned'. "The changing part is the same. Just be … more gentle."

Toivo gurgled at her, slamming his hands against the table to make even more of a mess.

"It's just his clothes," Ringabel assured her. "I'll be there to change his diaper again if he's soiled it, but I promise you it truly isn't that hard. You've helped me change a few times, too."

"Uh, that's hardly the same thing." Because she hadn't been helping him change so much as helping him _out_ of his clothes entirely, and because she never had to worry about being gentle with Ringabel, at least not physically. Most of the time she handled him was when he was either drunk or tired, when he couldn't care less if she let him on the floor. A baby would be a different story, surely.

But she sighed all the same and reached over to begin to gingerly unstrap Toivo from his high chair. Ringabel watched her, hazel eyes probably judging her technique as she hefted the toddler from the chair, trying not to get some of that mess on her blouse as she propped him on her hip.

"We brought a change of clothes," he reminded her as Toivo tried to grab her hair. It was true, they had. Tiz had recommended it, and they would be spending the night anyway, once the Arriors returned home. "Two, actually. So, there's really no need to worry about getting too dirty, is there?"

"I suppose not…"

He went back to his mashed potatoes, stirring them idly. "I'll come and help you in a bit. Just give it a shot, my dear. Or are you afraid?"

"I'm not afraid!" she told him, narrowing her eyes. "Why would I be afraid of changing him? He's only a little - baby, is all he is!"

Ringabel said nothing, but glanced at her over the top of his coffee mug as he drank from it, and she turned to storm out of the room, Toivo in her arms.

Carefully, she placed Toivo on the changing table, watching as the boy grabbed at his feet and wiggled around. "Alright," she said to herself, pushing her sleeves up. "You've faced worse, Edea. Just go in there and…!"

Except when she pulled the smock over his head, some of the food that had been spread on his top spread into his hair and into his face and though the wide, mostly toothless grin that he gave her was cute, the continued mess was not. She tried to wipe it off with the edge of his discarded clothing, but only succeeded in making things messier.

Mrgrgr!

Ringabel poked his head in. "How is it going?"

"Can you get a wet washcloth?" she asked him. Ringabel coming solved the problem of how she was going to get a wet washcloth without leaving the baby alone on the table. She knew that you didn't leave babies who could roll over alone like that! They didn't need him getting a bump on the head on top of everything else.

He did as requested, but as he brought it back and handed it to her, he said, "I think we're going to need to bathe him."

Edea ignored him for a moment, scrubbing the cloth along the baby's dirty face and neck. He squirmed and batted at her with his little hands, wailing in displeasure.

"How do we do that."

"It's just like washing a dog, probably."

"We don't _have_ a dog!"

Toivo was beginning to cry again, his face crumpling up. At least that was clean, Edea thought with a bit of exasperation. Ringabel scooped the baby up into his arms, mess and all.

"We'll figure it out together," he told her soothingly, crooning to both her and the baby. "How hard can it be?"

Toivo was old enough and large enough that they could simply plop him into the bathtub, they decided. Ringabel ran the water until it was only a couple of inches deep, and added some bubble solution that Edea had once gifted to Agnès a few years ago so that a nice layer of bubbles covered the top.

Then the little boy went in, dirty and grubby, and he immediately started to play with the bubbles, paying no mind to the two adults who also looked like they wanted to play with the bubbles.

"I think when we get home," Ringabel commented to Edea, who was kneeling beside him. They knew _not_ to leave the baby alone in the water, just as you didn't leave an animal alone in the bath, and had decided they'd both help with this endeavor. "I think when we get home, that you and I should take a nice, long bath together."

"With bubbles?"

"Of course, as well as some champagne, a few candles… I've got some dried rose petals leftover from last month."

"That sounds like a date," she replied. Tiz and Agnès had a small cup sitting on the bathtub that she had figured out was for splashing water over a bathing child, and so Edea used it for that now, careful not to get the soap in his eyes. His hair plastered all over his face and head, making him look much like his father did when his hair got wet. It was adorable.

Toivo was distracted, now playing with a few hollow, wooden toys that Ringabel had made himself months ago, splashing them in and out of the bubbles. They were light enough to float on the water, and so were greatly entertaining as together, she and Ringabel scrubbed the child down until not even a speck of mashed peas remained behind.

"That wasn't so hard," Ringabel commented as he lifted Toivo up in his arms. The boy was wrapped up in the biggest, fluffiest towel they could find, his hair sticking out from his head as they tried to dry him off.

She was covered with water from head to toe. She had no idea how that had happened. Ringabel as well, was pretty soaked. "Don't jinx us," she told him as she examined her clothing. She was once again thankful they had brought some changes of clothes.

"I'll dress him while you get dressed," Ringabel offered, still scrubbing at Toivo's fluff of hair. "And then if you want to hold him for a while, I'll change."

They were _not_ going to leave him on his own again, and with the bathtub wet from the bath, with bubbles still sticking to the sides even with the water drained, they couldn't ground him again.

Tiz had a small "office"/storeroom that also doubled as a guest room; it was also where the couple locked away all the items they didn't want their toddler getting to. There was a bed that could be folded down from the wall once the rest of the furniture was moved out of the way, but as it stood now, there was plenty of room for Edea to change. She stripped out of sodden clothes, and after a bit of consideration, changed into her pajamas. How did parents do it? How did they ever want to leave the house after dealing with an energetic child all day?

"Are you tired?" Ringabel asked when she returned to him. By now he had gotten Toivo dressed again, the boy clothed in a clean smock with a clean diaper. His hair was only damp, but still just as wild as it had been before. Ringabel had only just started to brush through it.

"We're not going anywhere," she pointed out, lifting Toivo to her hip and taking the small, soft hairbrush from Ringabel.

"You should style his hair in a pompadour," Ringabel pointed out. "It would be cute!"

… actually, that would be kind of cute, and Agnès would likely think it adorable, while Tiz might be exasperated. "I'll consider it," she replied, already planning on how to pull it off. Ringabel of course, carried his vast hair products wherever he went, but she knew Tiz had a supply of pomade for the special occasions he needed to tame his hair (though given how infrequently those occasions were, she wasn't sure the pomade was still good).

Her husband gave her a twinkling smile. "I'll help," he offered.

"I know how to style your hair," she reminded him. She didn't _like_ knowing how to, but she had watched him do it often enough in their shared bathroom that she had figured it out before long. Ringabel took so long getting ready in the morning that they would never get anywhere if she didn't also use the space herself at the same time.

She dug out the pomade from Tiz's small supply of hygiene products, the small container buried underneath aftershave and unused cologne. It… still looked good and unexpired, and so with that in mind, she carried Toivo into the kitchen and once again set him down into his high chair to play with his hair.

Ringabel found her there as she was pulling the front of the boy's locks into the familiar curvy shape. He pulled up a chair to watch, propping his chin in his hands. He too, had decided to change into his pajamas.

"You're good at that," he commented, as she brushed out some of the waves. Toivo was not staying very still, making it hard, but at least he wasn't crying again.

"I told you," she said, distracted. A few strands just _refused_ to cooperate and stuck out. The kid was truly his father's son. "I've watched you enough to know how to do it."

He joined her, helping shape the back of the boy's hair until they were finished. The end result was a toddler with the strangest looking pompadour Edea had ever seen, even stranger than Ringabel's. Toivo smiled gummily at them as they stood back to survey their work.

"I wish I had brought a camera," Ringabel lamented. "How will Tiz see our masterpiece?"

"We just have to keep him neat until Tiz and Agnès come back," Edea replied, glancing toward the kitchen clock. A couple of hours had passed since she had last heard from Agnès. The show would likely be ending soon, and she wasn't sure if Agnès would call again or if the couple would go to dinner first. That would probably take an… hour, and then another hour or so for them to return home.

"That may be more easily said than done," he pointed out. "How many times have we changed him now?"

"Too many to count," she grumbled.

They couldn't keep Toivo tied down in the chair forever, though it was tempting, and so Ringabel carried him out into the living space. From there, he upended the wicker basket that contained an assortment of toys and stretched out on the floor with the child, playing with him. Toivo was especially taken with the wooden soldiers and the fun noises that Ringabel made as they fought against each other. Soon, the little boy was giggling.

Edea leaned back against the couch with a glass of tea, watching the baby and the slightly bigger baby playing. It was cute. Ringabel wanted children, but on top of that, he had always liked caring for children. He had once told her that his own childhood had been bleak and miserable enough, and that no one else needed to suffer through the same way. It was why he went out of his way to deliver some kindness to children in Eternia, often stopping in the streets when they were out running errands to engage in snowball fights, and he arranged for deliveries of sweets to be made every month to the children's ward in the healing tower. He would be a good father, someday.

The playing had the nice side effect of wearing Toivo out, and before long he was crawling to lean against Ringabel's side, a wooden soldier tight in his hand. Ringabel took it from him, and the toddler curled up against him and closed his eyes.

"What do I do?" Ringabel asked after a moment, looking down at the boy.

"I guess you live there now," she replied, sipping at her tea. A headache had been building behind her eyes, but now it was fading. "Goodbye, Ringabel. I knew you well."

He twisted onto his back to glare up at her. "Dear. Please. I need your help."

She flapped a hand at him. "Don't wake the baby, honey. Do you want me to bring you a book?" She would take pity on him.

Ringabel let out of a sigh, his chest heaving. The toddler hardly moved. "If you could, please."

She went to the bookshelf to try and find a book that he might like when the light of the crystal shard flashed again, causing her to take a slight detour.

Tiz and Agnès were both visible in the tiny piece of crystal.

"How are things going?" Tiz asked, his arm tight around Agnès's shoulder. From the looks of it, it seemed as though they were sitting outside a restaurant. Waiting, maybe? Or just taking a moment to check in. "Have you broken anything yet?"

"Everything's fine," she assured him. "We haven't broken a single thing! Except perhaps Ringabel's pride."

"That's been gone a while," Tiz reminded her. "Why, what happened?"

She swung the crystal around until they could see the scene in front of her; Ringabel laying awkwardly on his back on their handmade rug, a wooden soldier in hand and the toddler sleeping against him. Though she could no longer see them, she heard Agnès coo in delight. Tiz laughed.

"Tiz," Ringabel hissed, his voice hushed so as to not disturb Toivo. "This is no laughing matter!"

"That means he likes you," Tiz assured him. "But uh, could you maybe not let him sleep on the floor for long? And what's with his hair?

"Where does he usually sleep?" Edea asked, suddenly unsure and also ignoring Tiz's question. He'd have to see that for himself. She now remembered Tiz building a crib months ago, but hadn't seen it in their room.

"In bed with us?" Tiz asked, as though it should have been obvious. "When he can walk around, we'll put him in the crib, but for now he shares. It keeps him warmer during the night."

"No wonder you two don't have more children," Edea said, because everything now made sense. That explained it.

"Anyway," Tiz pushed on, ignoring her comment. "The wicker basket that has those extra blankets in it, the one by the couch. You can empty it and put him in there if you don't want to stay in the bedroom. Just keep an eye on him. He sometimes wanders after he wakes up from a nap. And what's with his hair?"

" _Wanders_?" Edea asked, trying to act shocked. And a part of her was shocked. So they knew he could get up and disappear? Why hadn't they said anything?!

Ringabel was already rolling to his knees. He barely disturbed the boy, as deep in sleep as Toivo was, and Edea watched him scoop his hands under the boy's form, cradling his head.

"Gotta go!" she said to Tiz and Agnès. With Ringabel's hands full like that, she would need to empty this wicker basket, which she spied sitting by itself. "Enjoy your dinner!"

"Give him a kiss for me!" Agnès said as the connection died. Edea set the crystal down and grabbed the basket, upending it over the couch with very little ceremony.

… then she grabbed one of the discarded blankets and used it to line the edges of the basket. She wasn't a total monster.

"Thanks," Ringabel told her, carefully placing the sleeping boy down. They tucked the blanket around him, and Edea fetched a stuffed animal for him to hold. Then, once it was obvious that he wouldn't wake, both adults fell back onto the couch, landing amongst quilts and comforters.

Edea wormed her way into her husband's arms until she could lay her head against his chest.

"You forgot to give him a kiss," Ringabel commented idly, his hand running down her arm almost ticklishly. "Agnès said to give him one."

"You can give him a kiss," she replied, nudging him in the side. In response, he kissed the top of her head instead, squeezing her gently around the waist. She settled against him, enjoying how hot he was through his clothes. The cottage could get chilly.

"How many times have I said it before?" Ringabel asked, his tone was teasing despite his words. "I'm not very interested in caring for men."

"He's a _baby_ ," Edea reminded him, elbowing him more viciously this time. "Are you going to say the same to any son we have?"

Ringabel cringed, yelping slightly as he bruised. "It was a joke! Just a joke, darling. I make exceptions for anyone younger than myself."

"Like Tiz?"

"Tiz is a special case anyway," he argued. "As is Agnès."

"Are you saying that you'll kiss Agnès?" Edea asked him, testing his common sense. Ringabel kissed Agnès on the cheek all the time, but she wanted to make him sweat with the implications.

Ringabel wisely kept his mouth shut, and after a moment of awkward silence, changed the topic. "So do you think we'll have a son?" His hand found hers.

She exhaled. She had brought that topic upon herself, she supposed, by mentioning their hypothetical son first. "Maybe," she relented. They both had babies on their minds, given how much of the past few hours had been spent with one. "Who knows? I don't think we have any say in what we get."

"I want a girl," Ringabel said, voice thoughtful. "Their clothes are cuter. All the bows and frills, and you could probably put a headband on her to match your own hair bow."

That… sounded _adorable_ , damn him. Edea as already thinking about how she might pull that off, though it had been a while since she'd had enough time to make actual clothing items. "Is that the only reason you want a girl?" she asked him, stalling for time as she tried not to think about all the knitting patterns that she knew by heart. Would she want to make the bow out of fabric or felt?

"Of course not. Girls are sweeter, they're more gentle…"

"Ringabel, come on." He was smarter than this.

"I think of the woman I love most in this world, and can't imagine anything I'd like more than for a daughter who might inherit her best qualities. Not to say that a son can't have those qualities as well, but with a girl it just seems more special, like you."

Edea felt oddly touched. Ringabel was way too good at buttering her up and saying sweet things, but for once she found that she didn't really mind if he had ulterior motives for being sappy. She twisted slightly, squirming around until her head was now nestled against his shoulder. They should probably keep things relatively tame since they were supposed to be babysitting, but that didn't mean she couldn't give him a kiss to his jawline.

He smiled down at her, and his lips pressed to her temple. "Besides," he started to add, and she prepared herself for him ruining the mood as always. "I'm not sure the world can handle another boy who might turn out like me."

There… were several ways she could take that, and she chose to go with one that wouldn't raise her blood pressure when she thought about how horrific his childhood had been, and how angry and hateful he'd been until his memories had been erased by terrible trauma. "I don't know," she replied lightly, patting his leg consolingly. "You're not the smartest, but you've turned out alright. The poor women in the world could use a break, though."

"They do have a break," he argued. "I'm a one-woman man now, you know that."

"You were flirting with the waiter last week when we went to dinner," she pointed out.

"I was not. I was merely complimenting her on her hairstyle!"

"You said her hair was gorgeous and divine and complimented her fair features. Don't you think most women would consider that flirting? It's not like she can tell you off for being a creep while she's on the clock working." She had told him this before, but he always seemed to forget. It was like his brain had no filter to his mouth, causing him to just leak thoughts around that were better bottled up. At least she'd left a big tip for the waitress in this case.

"I know," he cringed. "I'm trying to get better. At least I didn't point out that blonde woman with that tight dress that we saw in that boutique yesterday. The way that her dress hugged her - "

" _Ringabel_ ," she interrupted him, before he got himself grounded to the couch by himself for the rest of the day, and even when they returned. Sleeping on the couch in Eternia was never pleasant. She tapped his stomach. "Can it."

Even if she _had_ noticed the tightness of that dress herself. She'd made a mental note to find a version of it for herself to wear.

He wisely shut his mouth, and instead wound his arms around her shoulders to hold her tight.

Toivo was lucky still asleep, despite their conversation. Edea found herself yawning as she watched him, a little bored. So if they couldn't do anything _fun,_ couldn't do anything _loud_ , couldn't do anything _outside_ , what could they do? What did Tiz and Agnès do?

"I imagine that Tiz usually works outside on the farm while Agnès is cooking or doing chores," Ringabel answered when she asked him. "They're hardly ones to conform to gender norms, but I know Agnès keeps an eye on Toivo and sleeps when he does." And Tiz had more farming experience than the former vestal did. She had been learning the basics from when him when she'd fallen pregnant, and caring for the baby took up most of her time now.

Edea made a face. "I don't know if I want that."

Ringabel shrugged, jostling her. "I know there are some things that only a mommy can do for her baby, but once we have ours, I certainly wouldn't staying home with the kids."

She looked at him, surprised. "You what?"

"You're the Grand Marshal, Edea. I can't imagine you staying at home and playing housewife. On the other hand, I've had enough adventures to last me several lifetimes. I can take care of our children while you work."

Against her will, a mental image of Ringabel in an apron trying to take care of a little blonde baby popped up. In this image, both baby and Ringabel were crying, and behind them, a stove was on fire, but Ringabel was doing his best. She smiled.

"I might consider that," she said. She didn't want to end her career to have a baby, but if Ringabel was going to take care of them, then… that was a game-changer. Maybe it wouldn't be so bad after all. "Then you should get some practice in, Daddy."

Her face immediately flushed hot when she realized what she said, but Ringabel was either too flustered or too wrapped up in his own thoughts of children to react much. He gave her an awkward smile, but it was several seconds later that her words really sank in, and she could see him catch on. His eyes flickered to her, and before he could do more than grin at her, she stood up, brushing her skirt off.

"You still want that book?" she asked, turning away so that she didn't have to see his insufferable smirk.

"Yes, dear," he replied, and the smirk was audible in his voice. "We can get some reading in while we wait for Toivo to wake."

" _You_ can get some reading in," Edea decided, patting her heated cheeks. "I'm going to take a nap in the other room for a while."

He whined now. "Edea, you could at least lay on the couch with me. You can put your head in my lap."

As much as she wanted to crawl into Tiz and Agnès's bed and let the embarrassment die off, she relented. She selected a book from the bookshelf for him - what was a farmer's almanac? - and brought it back to Ringabel. When he took it her from her and began to rifle through it, she stretched out on the couch beside him and rested her head on his leg. Immediately, he reached down to begin to pet her hair. When his fingers started to comb against her scalp, nails lightly scratching, her eyes slipped shut. _This_ was why she had married him.

"Darling," he said softly sometime later, jolting her out of a doze. Her eyelids felt heavy. "While you're down there, do you think you can scratch my left leg?"

Or maybe not, she decided, letting one of her arms fall of the side of the couch so she could scratch the mentioned leg. Sometimes, he had no sense of romance.


End file.
